Lumenis Theatre Company
Past Productions
Noctural Wanderer (Yeyoushen, 夜遊神)
Lumenis Theatre Company in association with The Arts House, in Conjunction with the Singapore Writers Festival presents a reading of Nocturnal Wanderer,
a play by Gao Xingjian ( 高行健), the first Chinese recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature.
A staged reading of Nobel Prize winning author Gao Xingjian’s Nocturnal Wanderer (Yeyoushen, 《夜遊 神》), the play is a fascinating tragicomedy of brilliant dark humour and sublime surrealism about dreaming, love and the meaning of life. Through his nocturnal wanderings in his dreams, the central character, Sleepwalker, meets some very unusual people and strange things start to happen. Because anything can happen, in dreams. Performed in Chinese with English subtitles.
《夜遊神》读剧
导演：李集庆
以演读剧的形式诠释诺贝尔文学奖得主高行健的《夜遊神》，重现这出迷人悲喜剧的黑色幽默，以及关于梦境、爱与生命意义的崇高超现实主义。夜游者这个中心人物在每晚的梦游中遇见许多不寻常的人事物，因为，在梦中，什么事都可能发生。
剧本演渎会以华语进行，附英文字幕
高行健，
1940年出生于中国江西省。1997年入籍法国，说得一口流利的法语。代表作《灵山》(1989)及《一个人的圣经》(1998)让他在学术及艺术工作上有跨领域的优异表现。这位在2000年荣获诺贝尔文学奖的小说家，翻译家， 剧作家，导演，评论家，及艺术家，目前致力于创新电影创作。他的第三部电影作品《美丽安魂曲》将在2013新加坡作家节全球首映。
Directed by Lee Chee Keng
Produced by David Ahlbrecht
Gao Xingjian
Born in 1940 in Jiangxi province, China, Gao Xingjian has been a French citizen since 1997 and speaks fluent French. Renowned for acclaimed novels like Soul Mountain (1989) and One Man’s Bible (1998), he has built up a career diverse both in academia and artistic disciplines. The novelist, translator, dramatist, director, critic and artist was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2000. He currently devotes much of his time to innovative film-making and his third film Requiem for Beauty will have its world premiere at the Singapore Writers Festival 2013.
London-Beijing Connections
Directed by Jonathan Man
“Mary Mazzilli's Magical Chairs is an intriguing fantasy….(on There’s only one Wayne Lee) There is a touching hopelessness about Ross's Carl while Chan's Wayne bursts with growing confidence…energetic production”
British Theatre
“Alexandre Ross and Chris Chan are truly exceptional in both productions.”UkTheatre Net
Magical Chairs
by Mary Mazzilli
There’s Only One Wayne Lee
by Roy Williams
Performed in Beijing at the Beijing Fringe International Festival
For Press-coverage in China click here
17th -18th September 2011
At Beijing people’s Art and Experimental Theatre
北京市人艺实验剧场
AT SOUTHWARK PLAYHOUSE IN AUGUST 2011 CELEBRATING YOUTH and BRITISH-CHINESE CONNECTIONS
Representing the UK at the Beijing International Fringe Festival, this will be the first ever British production to be presented at this pioneering festival.
Supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England and by China-UK Connections Through Cultures, British Council.
Photography by Elaine Wong
Casa / Magical Chairs
A theatrical dance piece choreographed by Annarita Mazzilli, with elements of structured improvisation, a collage of still images and stylized sketches inspired from typical everyday life situations. Big heavy coats come to life... Characters go through individual journeys... Sense of belonging and what makes a place home are questioned...
Lumenis has invited guest artist Annarita Mazzilli to create a physical theatre piece, This was also staged at The Camden People‟s Theatre as part of the Camden Fringe and again staged at The Blue Elephant Theatre in May 2011. The work explores the themes of cultural identity and personal alienation. It looks at the problems with cultural identification and integration despite living in a globalised changing culture. Human interrelation, sense of community and solitude are all part of the everyday struggle to fit.
The cast comprised both students from Idea Store – Tower Hamlet, London and 6
professional dancers. Click here to see video!
Choreographed by Annarita Mazzilli
Casa has also been performed at The Space (November 2009), Victoria Train Station (March 2010) and Bexleyheath Shopping Centre (May 2010) as part of BigDance and last year at the Camden People's Theatre as part of the Camden Fringe- click here for more info.
Old Bags
Directed by Jonathan Man
Written by Mary Mazzilli
Produced by David Albrecht (Press Contact)
“This is a beautiful and poetic insight into ageing from a very exciting writer…The plot of this finely tuned play is an excellent example of craftsmanship …excellent Martin Aukland as Dorian ….fantastic script”
Four Stars - Fringe Review
“The production is extremely well directed and professional throughout… Lilia Vara who plays both Anne and Dorian's girlfriend Sandra almost simultaneously at times … handles both very capably and differently which is not an easy challenge…an emotive work beneficial to theatre and all those who see it”
Three stars - Remote Goat
"Sibéal McGuinne gives a very poetic and touching performance as Vivian. Vivian’s scenes with Gloria (an impressive Suni La) are both tender and disturbing...the writing is of extremely high quality"
Uk theatre net
A New Incisive Comedy Drama about Dementia and Ageing
12th October to 16th October, 2010
At New Wimbledon Studio
Six shows: 5 at 7:45 and Saturday matinee at 3pm
"So much old stuff! It makes me sick. Most of the oldies' houses are all alike. Same old smell, same furniture, old pictures."
Days pass with unceasing repetitions in the life of two people, Vivian and Dorian. Vivian, an Irish lady in her seventies, widow of a British Army official, ignores the first signs of dementia. Dorian, like a hamster on wheel, questions his place in the rat race. Old Bags, an incisive new comedy drama, tells two stories, two journeys, of two unlikely companions, through laughter and tears.
Cast
Vivian: Sibeal McGuinne
Dorian : Martin Aukland
Sandra: Lilia Vara
Gloria: Suni La
Creative/Production Team
Set Designer: Ricardo Pardo
Costume Designer: Orietta Araya
Lighting Designer: Azusa Ono
Composer/Music Designer: Andy Higgs
Sound Designer: Simon McCabe
Movement Director: Annarita Mazzilli
Assistant Director Assistant Stage Manager: Marija Djacenko
Trainee Producer Assistant: Camilla Halford
Production Administrator:Giovanna Loiotile
Casa
"Casa" (Home) a theatrical dance piece choreographed by Annarita Mazzilli as Part of the Camden Fringe Festival
Camden People’s Theatre (58-60 Hampstead Road, London, NW1 2PY)
9th – 13th August 2010, 9.15pm
“CASA offers up a series of clever and diverting interpretations of cultural identity and belonging”
“Five of the six dancers wear heavy woollen coats, which Mazzilli cleverly uses to suggest and symbolise various aspects of self and situation.”
“CASA is overall an interesting and well-realised study of selfhood, cultural identity and the construction of a sense of home.”
Choreographed by Annarita Mazzilli
Les Chaises
Directed by Jonathan Man
Written by Mary Mazzilli
Produced by David Albrecht (Press Contact)
"Engaging and very human stories"
Uktheatre
Summer Tour
Old Red Lion (July 2009), Camden People’s Theatre as part of Camden Fringe August 2009, Southwark Playhouse ( Only Clearance and Foreplay were performed here), Lion and Unicorn Theatre (Sept. 2009)
“Les Chaises” -three short plays- is based on the premise that ‘chair’ has strangely inspired many artists as an object and a symbol for a manifold of meanings (among the most famous Eugene Ionesco’s Les Chaises-1956 and Caryl Churchill’s farce sketches This is a chair (1999), as well as contemporary conceptual artist Joseph Kosuth). The selected plays have been chosen on the premise that theatre can entertain and surprise in its simplicity and directedness.
Clearance
by Fiona Whitelaw
Directed by Sharon Enav
Jean is clearing her father’s house, after his death in a care home. All of the furniture has been taken, except for one leather chair in an empty room. She invites the local antique dealer to value the piece, when his son arrives to look at the chair, her reasons for holding onto it begin to unravel. If Alfie persuades Jean to part with the chair, what else will be cleared out and what may replace it?
Cast
Griffin Stevens –AlfieJean
Ingrid Evans- Jean
Other voices – Kath Perry, Marc Forde, Orie Enav
Sound Design – William Morris
Foreplay
by Sue Lernier
Directed by Amy Skilling
A comedy of relationships. Alistair wants a baby. Janey’s not so sure. They go to a sex therapist for help. By the time they’re finished, the therapist needs help. This darkly comic romp exposes a disintegrating relationship through the psychiatrist’s chair.
Cast
Paul Innes –Alistair
Joleen Stovold-Janey
Benita Gibbons-Simla
Attempts on A Missing Chair
by Mary Mazzilli
Directed by Mark Huhnen
An elderly couple are arguing on who should sit on the only chair in the room. Now their grandson has gone missing and they try to come to terms with their loss. A janitor (an ex-soldier who had been fighting in Iraq till he was sent back on mental health grounds) listens to the couple’s conversation and he offers his help. Inspired by Ionesco’s Les Chaises, this is an ‘absurdist,’ whimsical play about the meaning of ‘missing’, longing for that special something or someone that has long gone or was never there in the first place.
Cast
Mark Huhnen - Old Man
Jennifer Pearcy-Edwards- Old Lady
Alex Kanefksy-Janitor.
The Wrong Sleep
Partly inspired by true events.
A darkly surreal play exploring religion, terrorism, female sexuality and obsession.
14th July – 1st August, 2009 at Cock Tavern Theatre, London
A desolate town is shaken by a blast at its core. Suspicions abound, its inhabitants should look inside where a stranger manipulates the society from within. This stranger is Janet, a young woman torn between Islam, Christianity and secularism. She is a victim of her confused childhood, of her sexuality and of her mental disarray. THE WRONG SLEEP tells the story of a woman plagued by insomnia, the demons in her mind and the demons of her past. During her sleepless nights violence and religion lure her towards committing acts of terrifying brutality. Violence and sex are the only ways Janet feels she can communicate with the world.
In January 2007 THE WRONG SLEEP had a reading at the Pleasance. After developing the script through workshops it was performed at Etcetera Theatre as part of the Camden Fringe Festival, 2008. The Cock Tavern Theatre presented this new production as part of their dynamic season of World Premieres in July 2009.
Cast
Janet- Nadia Shash
Priest- David McClelland
Written by Mary Mazzilli
Directed by Adam Morley
Produced by David Ahlbrecht
"Mazzilli’s intense, poetic language flits between themes of sex and incest, imperialism and terrorism, compassion and retribution. It challenges and touches the audience ... manages to engage from beginning to end"
from UKtheatre; for full review click here.
“Mazzilli’s writing is poetic, strange and enlightening.”
**** from Fringe Review for full review Click Here
To hear the writer and director talking about the production click here.
Assistant Directors
Erica Miller & Victoria Cartwright
Costume Designer
Nerea Villares
Production Team
Annarita Mazzilli- Production Manager
Zuzana Jochman – Production Executive